GUN DEBATE: Senate To Discuss Gun Control

The Senate Judiciary Committee will consider proposals to ban assault weapons and expand background checks for other gun purchases. U.S. Senator Charles Grassley of Iowa has his concerns about the increased background checks. “Where it bothers me is, where you have one person selling guns to another person, or maybe a father giving a gun to his son, do I want to tie those people down with a lot of red tape and maybe violation of law without even knowing they`re violating the law?” Grassley said.

Grassley says he hasn’t seen the legislation, so he can’t comment on a proposed assault weapons ban. Backers of a ban met at Grassley’s office in Des Moines to urge him to pass the bill.

“At the core of it, what we want is for our children to be safe.” says Connie Ryan Terrell of the Interfaith Alliance of Iowa, “What we want is for our communities to be safe. Assault weapons do not keep our community safe they do not keep our children safe.”

But Jeff Burkett of the Iowa Firearms Coalition says that argument has no merit. “You ban one set of weapons based on cosmetic features and not even functional features for the most part you`re leaving a whole slew of firearms available out there so it`s becoming apparent to people when they`re getting educated on this issue that this is just a simple anti-gun attack with little common sense and a lot of emotion.”

A poll last month by the Des Moines Register showed a majority of Iowans support tougher background checks, a re-newed ban on assault weapons and limits on the capacity of ammunition magazine.